The remnant of the fox
by eugenio4079
Summary: Takashi Komuro eldest son of Takashi-Namikaze bloodline, holder of the great Kurama was having a pretty crappy week his girlfriend dumped him so she could get together with his best friend Hisashi Igou but that all changed when "they" came. (A big thank you to Cruelruin because he is the co-writer, this story wouldn't even be possible if it weren't for him)
1. Chapter 1

**The night before everything ended,**

 **I stayed up late.**

Takashi stood on the roof of the school, leaning on the guard rails. Sakura leaves blowing all around him. generally, this would be quite a beautiful scene. Fall was beginning and for a week, Japan would become a beautiful land of floating sakura. A whirlwind of pink engulfing giant cities of grey, Yet, Takashi could simply not find it in himself to be happy.

 **"Kit, there is no point dwelling on the past. One vixen left you, that doesn't mean you are out of options."**

Takashi just yawned, deciding to ignore the voice inside of him. To explain it to someone would be pointless, who would believe the fact that he had a voice in his head that believed it was a fox demon?

Takashi Komuro, the eldest son of the Takashi-Namikaze bloodline. He was from an old house, one that could trace it's origins back to when Japan was a nation at war with itself. Some even claimed that the bloodline was far more ancient. Takashi himself didn't care. For all it mattered to him, his ancestors could go suck it.

There was simply one thing that he couldn't explain about his descent, though. And that was the fact that the eldest child of his family would always be born with a voice in his head. The same voice, what more. One of a demon fox. The family itself was too prideful to ever consult a doctor, a psychiatrist, or even a priest for that matter. The voice was never bothersome, even if it was a bit intrusive.

Noticing the silence of his mental companion, Takashi started to speak "It isn't about how many vixen there are in the forest, Kurama. It is about the one I lost."

Takashi Komuro, 18, a certified loony, and a man with a broken heart. It had been merely a week since his childhood friend and erstwhile friend, Rei Miyamoto, had broken up with him and started dating his best friend, Hisashi Igou. It wasn't just heartache he felt, but betrayal too.

Hisashi had been Takashi's main man all his life. They had been fast friends ever since high school began, and he had been with Takashi every time he got into a sticky situation. He was the first guy who understood Takashi and the fact that his relationship with Rei was on the rocks. And he had taken the best opportunity to pounce.

What a great friend.

 **"Kit, she's gone. Stolen away by that teme. Forget her, you'll find someone better. You house the great Kyuubi in you, Kurama!"**

"Yeah, there's that. Sure. If you are to be believed, I'm the human equivalent of a nuclear reactor" Takashi mumbled to himself. Kurama was known to speak of the days when he was great. When he was revered by many as a god, and his container as a messiah. But Takashi knew when to call bullshit on someone's tales.

If he was supposed to be destined for greatness, how come he lost the only woman he had ever loved?

 **"I give up, you keep coming back to her again and again. At least I can say that I tried."**

With that, the fox's signature disappeared from his mind, allowing him the peace and quiet he so rightly deserved.

While it was his plan to relax, take his time and get over Rei, his mind simply wouldn't let him have that. The first memory his mind threw up was of him and a much younger Rei, of the day she promised to marry him. They were kids back then, when everything was much more simple.

"Pinky promise, what a load of bull." Takashi murmured, splaying his arms across the guardrail in a position of defeat. he let his head hang low, wondering whether he should just jump and end it all.

 **"Kit, if you were to kill yourself, the earth would never know days of peace again."**

Takashi groaned as he straightened himself. Then, he noticed someone at the school gates, banging them as hard as he possibly could.

"He wants to get in? I'd pay him to let me out!" Takashi exclaimed, flinging his arms up in exasperation.

 **"Takashi, something is...wrong about that human."**

Takashi stiffened up. The only time Kurama used his given name was when something serious was going down. Takashi diverted his attention towards the gate, noticing that it had attracted a small crowd towards it, with the PE instructor and the new comprehension teacher in the lead. From his distance, he couldn't hear them at all. So he used one of the techniques that Kurama had taught him in his youth.

He manipulated chakra towards his ears, making them hyper sensitive. As a result, he was able to clearly hear what was going on .

 **"I see my tutelage is not lost on you, Takashi."**

"What's happening here?" The busty female teacher asked the man who was banging on the gate. The man seemed to not even hear her, as he continued banging on the door.

"Hold your horses, Hayashi-san!" The PE instructor yelled, walking towards the gate as he rolled back his sleeves. "There is no need to call anyone when we can simply show this imbecile who's boss."

"This is not going to end well." Takashi spoke, a feeling of dread blossoming in his mind. When Kurama spoke, Takashi could almost visualize Kurama nodding in agreement.

 **"For once, Takashi, it would seem that we are both in agreement."  
**

What happened next could only be described as complete chaos.

As the teacher tried to manhandle the guy on the other side of the gate. the man didn't fight back. instead, he BIT the teacher in the jugular. The sight of blood was enough to make most students run away. But the ones who did stay, didn't stay for long.

As the PE teacher lay dying, he caught hold of the female teacher and bit her.

And then, the school went into anarchy. as everyone started to run around.

Takashi could only watch in horror as something he could only imagine as a part of a B-grade horror flick started to bleed into his reality.

 **"Kit, whatever you do, just RUN!"**

That was all the motivation Takashi needed as he infused his legs with chakra and bolted down the stairs, leaving nothing but the whirling sakura leaves in his wake.

In the morning light, one could say that the sakura looked different.

Almost like drops of blood in the sky.

Takashi's first impulse was to warn Rei, let her know what was coming. As he rushed past another empty corridor, he noticed that the chaos that permeated the school field yard not yet reached the classes. Lessons were still being delivered and students were still sitting in their classes, the sense of normalcy the school radiated almost made Takashi forget about what he had just witnessed for a second.

As he rounded the last corner to his class, he stopped. The glass-cut of the class door afforded him a view of the entire room. And in the last row sat Rei, he was about to step in, when he noticed that Hisashi was sitting right next to her, holding her hand.

As altruistic as Takashi would like to believe he was, he wasn't selfless. Neither had he been brought up that way, not had Kurama been a very good influence on him in that particular regard.

 **"Do you really want to do this, kit? Do you really attach more value to the life of someone who blew you off for no reason than you do to your own?"**

Takashi looked back at Rei, who seemed to look out of the glass at that very moment. Takashi turned around and walked off. He had more important things to take care of is he wished to survive. Food, water, weaponry. The three things that were more crucial than Rei's well being.

He simply walked off, not even realizing that the look Rei gave his retreating back was not one of condescension, but of concern.

As Takashi neared the dorm building, he passed by the Kendo club. He heard a yell from inside. The door opened and a girl with purple hair and a shinai ran out. Three of the undead followed her out, walking faster than what Takashi has observed till now.

The girl drew her shinai, surprising Takashi with the accuracy of her swing. She had managed to crush the head of one of the undead while moving. But she had overextended. The next one of the undead continued, unaffected by the death of its comrade.

That's when Takashi noticed the girl's face.

It was a beautiful face, contorted by a murderous smile. While the smile alone would be enough to scare most opponents away, It only served to make Takashi more curious. What exactly this girl had lived through that had made her this way, only god knew. What Takashi knew, though was how inquisitive it made him.

He couldn't let this woman die here.

 **"Kit, you're thinking like a real man now. So, are you okay with her knowing what you are capable of doing?"**

Instead of responding, Takashi simply infuse chakra into his muscles and leapt forward, faster than the human eye could follow. Out of seemingly nowhere, he drew an ancient Japanese kunai and sliced through the necks of both the remaining undead.

 **"I see, in this world that has lost its peace, you have lost your inhibitions. Just don't overdo it."**

All his life, Takashi had hidden under others. He had hidden his brilliant analytical mind under Saya Takagi's genius, his good looks under Hisashi's radiance, his strength under Morita's slacker attitude.

And his powers deep within his psyche.

That wasn't to say that he was some kind of superhuman. Using chakra, he could move faster, hit harder, and take more hits. But he wasn't even close to the immortal warriors Kurama spoke so fondly of.

A well placed bullet, a blade to the jugular, a bite of the undead.

Would all take him down just as easy as they would anyone else.

Kurama had made clear to him how little chakra humans now possessed. How one could no longer reproduce the powerful, elemental powers of the past.

He had mentioned how the only way Takashi could grow stronger was through control.

And he was right.

The purple haired girl looked at Takashi. Now that her crazy grin was gone, Takashi realized who he was looking at. Saeko Busujima, head of the kendo club. The woman of many a man's dream. One of the most popular people in the social circles of Tokonosu.

And someone who had never interacted with him, or possibly even knew his name.

Takashi simply turned on his heel and shot off toward the hostel, leaving the bewildered swords woman with a single question in her mind.

Why had she failed to notice someone that intimidating in her school, her own domain?

 **"I thought you stopped carrying Kunai after that ordeal with the metal scanner at the airport."**

"I never stopped carrying one, I simply learnt how to hide it better." Takashi spoke, throwing stuff out of his cupboard. As he finished emptying it out, he punched through the fake wooden back, not having the time to take it out properly. His hand shot back out with a scroll in it.

A scroll that contained the weapon he needed.

 **"Hopefully you still know how to use that."**

Takashi merely scoffed at the idea. Sealing things into a scroll was the first thing he had ever learnt in his life. He cut his finger on his kunai and dragged it across the scroll. The blood was soaked up by it and an ethereal glow emanated from the scroll as a cubical shape started to rise from it. Takashi grabbed this shape and pulled it out. In his hands, the object stopped glowing. It was an o-katana of ancient make.

 **"Ah, the teme's sword, quite ironic how it ended up in the hands of the dobe's descendant."**

"You use those two words quite often, Kurama. Who exactly are you referring to?" Takashi questioned, drawing the sword. The blade was unblemished, sharp enough to cut through rock.

 **"People who I met and fought with during the course of my eternal life. "**

Takashi grunted, sheathing the sword again. The last thing he needed right now was a history lesson, and it seemed Kurama wasn't in the mood to provide one either.

In a matter of minutes, Takashi had entered the hostel's pantry. Sealing all possible food items in his scroll, he quickly shot back towards the main building.

Just as he entered the main building, He heard the intercom crackle to life.

This was not good.

Takashi had to cross the main school building to get to the teachers' garage, sadly for him, the building was overrun with people trying to get out. What these people did not realize was that the school doors were only wide enough to let around five students in at a go. The school builder seemed to have a lot of tact, for the way he built the door would facilitate timely exit in case of a fire drill, or even a real fire.

Sadly, a fire was something completely different from the rising of the dead.

People tend to differentiate between two things that are both likely to kill them. While people could die of fire as easily as they could by an infection, they would always fear the infection more. And an infection that turned the dead into shambling nightmares was something that wasn't easy to believe or accept.

And hence, the door became a choke point for students rushing towards the main gate. Many weaker students were crushed in the subsequent stampede. The ones who did make it out were greeted by a scene from their wildest nightmares.

Their juniors, seniors and classmates. Shambling around the school grounds. Not alive, not dead.

coming for their flesh.

It was almost a cathartic moment for Takashi. He never liked his 'schoolmates' much. All his life, he had been treated like an inferior person. Just because he had things to hide didn't mean he was as worthless as they made him out to be.

And what better way to prove it than to survive while they all fell.

As Takashi passed through the main building, he noticed that there were three people on the skywalk that connected the main building to the admin building. He himself stood on the skywalk right opposite to it, leading to the teacher's lounge. Reinforcing his eyes, Takashi could make out that the people on the skywalk were indeed Rei and Hisashi.

And facing off against them was one of the undead.

 **"Kit, there is no reason for you to be concerned about those two."**

Takashi nodded uncertainly. He watched as Rei skewered the undead through the heart.

Rookie mistake.

The undead simply kept moving. Hisashi tried to punch it, but it had no effect. The undead steadily gained on Rei, who was crawling back towards then skywalk's guard rails.

Before the undead could bite her, though. It fell dead at her feet. An oddly shaped knife embedded in his skull. Hisashi quickly turned to look at the direction where the knife came from, only to find an empty skywalk on the other side.

Unnerved, yet calm. Hisashi quickly grabbed Rei and pulled her up. he then pulled out the knife from the undead's head and scrutinized it. There were no markings on it except for one single line on the haft.

Property of TK

Rei shook herself out of her reverie, grabbing Hisashi's arm and running off the skywalk.

As the couple left, Takashi stepped out of the shadows, casting a glance at the dead figure on the ground. He grunted, Hisashi wasn't content enough with stealing his girl, apparently. For he had stolen his kunai too.

 **"I hope you know that you didn't have to do that."**

A dry chuckle emanated from Takashi's throat as he looked out towards the swarming school grounds.

"It wasn't for them. Those two were probably the only people who treated me as an equal all my life." Takashi stated, turning around and walking towards the teacher's lounge, and then towards the garage.

"It was for me, kind of like returning a favor. Next time I meet them, I'll owe them nothing."

As Takashi reached the teacher's garage. He noticed that the teachers didn't keep their keys there. He grunted, realizing his lack of foresight. He turned around, deciding to look around the school for keys.

All of a sudden, something behind him moved.

Following the direction of the sound, Takashi launched himself into action. His hand moved faster than his mind could think. He stopped his blade mere millimeters away from the source of the noise, ready to finish his stroke if need be.

Luckily, the man standing in front of him was very much alive.

"S-top! Don't kill me!" the man screamed as he scrambled back. His back hit a car as he realized that he was cornered.

"I don't plan to. You're a teacher, aren't you?" Takashi spoke, sheathing his sword. He got a good glimpse at the man in front of him. He has to be in his mid twenties. The man had wavy black hair and a wiry frame and half-rimmed spectacles. Takashi recognized him as the newly hired music teacher.

The thin man nodded fervently. "Tohno Hirai, I teach music. And you are?"

"Takashi Komuro, second year. You wouldn't happen to own one of these, would you?" Takashi asked. Tohno pointed towards an old ford boss standing in the back of the garage. "That's mine, but there's an Issue. My keys are in the faculty room."

Takashi turned around, thinking whether he should help out the new teacher. On one hand, he would no longer be alone, and hence, not be able to escape with ease and would have to share his resources. On the other hand, A car and someone that knew how to drive it would be priceless in such a situation. He reached into his mind, wondering what Kurama thought about this.

 **"You should help him. It'll not only make it much easier for you to escape, kit, but you'll be able to cover long distances faster. As for your resources, you can always give him the slip if you need to."**

Takashi couldn't agree more. He turned to face Tohno, who was looking at him with anticipation.

"Hide here for ten minutes, I shall be back with your keys."  
-

Takashi's first reaction on entering the corridor leading to the faculty room was one of surprise. Around half a dozen undead lay dead on the ground. While some had their brains obliterated by sheer force. Others were dispatched with skill, by a shinai, what more. Some had nails embedded in their foreheads, a gruesome way to kill, but effective nonetheless.

One of the bodies was still twitching. It was almost decapitated, but the spine still held the head in place, even though the nerves were gone and blood was pouring out of his jugular. There was no doubt about it, the weapon used to do this was a Kunai.

 **"Huh, so the teme has survived this far."**

"He was always a good leader. I'd be surprised if he didn't make it out of here as well." Takashi replied in a carefully balanced, neutral tone. He wasn't yet stable enough to compliment Hisashi without feeling intense hatred. Instead, Takashi opened the door to the faculty room. Someone had been there recently, and he had a good idea who it, or they, were.

Paying no heed to the scene around him, Takashi started surveying the area for Tohno's cubicle. He found it in the back of the room. He opened his drawer and found what he was looking for. Key in hand, Takashi ran towards the garage.

The stage was set, now, it was time for the great escape.

Tohno sat in the car, Takashi riding shotgun. As the garage's shutter opened, Takashi braced himself to face whatever number of undead that lay between him and the school gate.

To his surprise, the nearest one of the undead was still out of earshot. Shuffling towards something in the distance. He followed the trajectory of the shuffling undead and found a bus standing in the middle of the school courtyard, students jumping into it. He could swear he saw Saeko enter it.

"Takashi, we might have a problem." Tohno spoke, pointing towards the school gate. It was overrun with them. In a car, it would be nigh impossible to run them all down. The sheer mass of their bodies would be enough to slow the card sown to a standstill.

 **"But would it be able to stop that bus?"**

"Tohno, listen. When that bus moves. I want you to follow it out. As soon as you are out of the school, overtake it. The students in it might try to highjack your car.

As soon as he said those words, a fire seemed to light up in Tohno's eyes. The bus started moving with a jolt and Tohno quickly started tailgating it. As it plowed through the barricade of undead, Tohno yelled.

"NONE OF YOU BASTARDS ARE TOUCHING MY BABY!"

Tohno's car quickly sped past the bus, leaving it behind in the dust.

In the bus, a certain purple haired beauty snickered. Guess someone else was competent enough to survive without her help.

In her heart, she already knew who it was.

She also knew that they would meet again,

soon.

VERY soon.


	2. Chapter 2

Takashi and Tohno had gained around 10 minutes of a head start when Takashi decided it would be better for the two to stop at the closest departmental store and stock up. Tohno had hastily agreed and pulled into a gas station about ten kilometers away from the school. there wasn't a single undead in sight, so Takashi decided that getting out of the car and walking into the gas station store was a sound idea.

" **Kit, we must act quickly, lest the bus catch up to us."**

Takashi looked around. they had overtaken the bus a long time back. By his approximation, they were ten minutes ahead at the least. Buying supplies and refueling wouldn't take them more than half that time. And if the bus did pass by, it wasn't likely to stop at the gas station unless the driver saw the car. He had no idea who was driving the car, but it was most likely a teacher. He wasn't even sure that Rei and Hisashi were on the bus. But the thought of joining his classmates still hung in his mind, unbidden.

 **"That is a stupid idea and you know it, kit. Going out of your way for someone when in crisis is a surefire was of getting killed."**

Takashi sighed. Sometimes, he was glad that he had a wise demon fox's voice filling his head with advice. At other times, he thought it was merely a nuisance.

At this point, he couldn't tell which one this was.

As he walked into the store, he was greeted by the most untroubled shop clerk he had ever seen in his life. The man was at peace with himself, his job, and the world.

Either that, or he was simply very, VERY bored.

The man didn't even move his head to follow Takashi as he entered, choosing instead to eye him with a very disinterested attitude. Takashi shivered as he felt the clerk's eyes follow him. Orbs of dullness stuck inside an immobile head.

 **"Kit, that man creeps me out."**

Takashi silently agreed as he picked up a few packets of frozen meat from the freezer. He then walked towards the clerk and asked him a very unorthodox question.

"Would you give me a discount if I told you that the world as we know it was coming to an end?"

The clerk simply looked at him, his facial expression unchanging. Takashi looked out towards the highway and saw one of the undead appear from the underbrush. As it slowly crawled through the road, it looked directly at the petrol pump. Takashi was almost going to hightail it out of there when the school bus that he was trying to escape from appeared out of nowhere, bashing into the undead and sending it flying. Whoever was driving the bus seemed oblivious to the fact that buses aren't meant to go that fast for so long.

The clerk didn't even move when the bloodsplatter from the road accident covered the window of his shop. Instead, he looked at Takashi, and spoke.

"First time customers get a 40% discount. Take it or leave it."

* * *

"So, you're the Takashi that Morita speaks of so often, aren't you?"

Takashi turned his head to face Tohno. They were driving a respectable distance behind the bus, considering it was going towards the city at breakneck speeds. Tohno had decided to drive at a respectable pace, giving the bus a few minutes of roadtime ahead of them.

"Yes, I'm surprised you know Morita, though. Didn't think the teachers liked him much."

Tohno's face scrunched into a frown, "yeah, I noticed." he spoke, "Your school was quite...competitive...to say the least. I saw how the teachers treated students who scored low marks. it was almost disgusting to see, really. Morita was one of my favorite students, though. He used to take the old gibson acoustic from the music to the roof all the time. One day, I followed him to the roof secretly in order to see what he did, considering he was terrible with a guitar. The music I heard, though, was a completely different caliber than what I expected from him. When i questioned him later, he told me it was you playing the guitar, not him. I looked for you, trying to scout you into the music club, though I never did find you, considering how scarce you made yourself. Morita did speak quite highly about you."

Takashi turned his gaze back to the road. Morita was one of the only people Takashi ever really considered a friend. Probably because the teachers saw both of them as useless duds. He remembered seeing Morita when he was running through the school.

Only, he wasn't technically 'alive' anymore.

 **"He was a good lad, kit. Shame what happened to him"**

Takashi was filled with guilt, considering he was unable to save the one person in school that he could truly call a friend. But he couldn't let this guilt hold him down. He had other priorities, like survival.

 **"You are better shinobi material than most of the shinobi I met during my life. At some level, it is almost frightening."**

Shrugging off Kurama's comment, Takashi tried his best to put his feelings into words. All he could manage was meager compared to what all was going on in his mind.

"...Morita was a good friend."

Tohno seemed content with the reply, though, nodding in agreement. "It is a shame he let that bastard Shido put him down though. Morita had a brilliant mind, but if you treat a horse like a donkey long enough, it'll start acting like one over time."

Takashi smirked, the fact that Tohno hated Shido just put him on Takashi's good side. He allowed himself to close his eyes for a minute, using chakra was an exhausting ordeal, and it was best for him to rest up and recover as much chakra as he could. Considering he hadn't even used much, a good night's sleep would be enough for him.

The last thing he saw was a tourist bus overtake their car. And then his vision faded to black.

* * *

Takashi had barely fallen asleep when he was jerked awake by the car suddenly stopping. The first thing he felt as he roused himself from his slumber was the feeling of heat. It was followed by the scent of burning gasoline. As he opened his eyes, he saw a fire in front of his car, blocking the path towards the central city.

And on the other side stood a bus, and from the bus, five figures were walking towards the car.

 **"Kit, you might want to hide your katana."**

Takashi nodded as he pushed his sword through the scroll in his hand. He then exited the car. Tohno had already stepped out and was speaking to the one man in the world who Takashi wished would have died in his school.

Koichi Shido.

"Ah, it is great to see another teacher from school able to survive this...disaster. Welcome to our fold, Tohno-san!" Shido proclaimed. he spread his hands in a welcoming gesture, though his eyes, glinting with malicious intent, made the gesture look almost forced.

"Ah, good to see you too, Shido-san." Tohno spoke. The passive look on his face made his words impossible to believe. Shido picked up on that and withdrew his gesture, focusing instead on the car.

"Ah, you have brought a secondary vehicle with you, how very nice! We could always shift some extra students from the bus into the car." Shido spoke, eyeing the chubby kid behind him as he spoke.

"It seems you are mistaken, Shido. Neither do we have any will to join you, neither are we going to surrender my car." Tohno spoke, radiating open hostility. Shido simply smirked.

"I see, but you are unarmed and alone, we have weapons and are many. Come with us, we'll keep you safe, else just surrender your car and we'll drop you wherever you need to go in the bus."

Tohno's hands curled into fists. His eyes shone with pure hatred. "Don't you dare lay a finger on my baby. or else..."

Shido's smirk grew wider, "Or else what?"

"Or else you won't have any fingers left by the end of it."

Shido turned towards the source of the voice as Takashi stepped out from behind the car, radiating pure killer intent. Shido was taken aback for a second, before regaining his senses and realizing that the person facing him was merely a schoolboy.

A damn intimidating schoolboy though.

"Kid, don't be foolish. We're five and you're two. Come along quietly and we'll be nice to you."

"Correction, there are three of you and four of them." A feminine voice spoke in a passive tone. Looking towards the source of the sound, Takashi found the source of the sound.

"Saeko Busujima. Quite an honor." Takashi spoke in a monotonous voice as Saeko and The chubby kid walked over to his side, leaving Shido at a loss for words.

"I see you know me, Well, my companion here is Kohta Hirano. And who would you be?"

Takashi was about to answer as a pink haired cannonball whizzed past Shido and almost knocked him over. It took Takashi a second to gather his wits and look down to see his childhood friend, Saya Takagi, hugging him.

It simply added to his discomfort, considering that he didn't really like the condescending genius. The only reason he bore with her was because he had immense respect for her parents.

"Takashi-kun! you survived!" Saya spoke, noticing his discomfort and taking a step back, much to his relief.

"Yes, Saya-chan. I wouldn't let a few of the undead hinder my ability to survive now, would I?"

 **"Oh bother, the coyote kit is here too. The only ones left are the vixen and the teme."**

"You have no idea how worried Igou-san and Rei-chan were when they didn't find you in school!"

 **"Aaaand now the entire circus routine is well and alive, Huzzah!"**

Takashi was both delighted and spited at the same time. The fact that Rei and Hisashi had made it out unharmed was a good thing. The fact that they might be around, however, was not comforting in the least.

"Yeah, give them my regards when you see them. We have to move." Takashi spoke, his indignation seeping through his words. He noticed Saeko's brow furrow as he said that. The woman was sharp, it wouldn't surprise him if she could read him better than anyone present there.

"Your regards? you aren't coming with us?" Saya asked, her face taking on a rather questioning appearance.

"No, I have things to do before I leave town. It would be in our best interests to not travel together, as I will probably take some time."

Saya looked disheartened, but quickly got herself back together and took on her stern, condescending pose again.

"Takashi, I want you to promise that once you're done with your 'work', you'll join us at my father's mansion."

 **"I love how she makes demands like she owns you, almost makes me want to toy with her before I kill her."**

Takashi's mind filled with anger, but he knew better than to let it take hold of himself. He simply nodded, letting Saya have her worthless promise.

"Yes, I will. Now if you would be kind enough to get the bus moved out of the way?"

* * *

"Well, this is my crib, it ain't much, but make yourself at home!"

Takashi and Tohno had arrived at his house an hour after the bus incident. It was a roomy place, that is to say that there were way more rooms than one would expect from a single man's house. Which brought about a question in Takashi's mind.

"The house is quite large, do other people live here with you, a girlfriend perhaps?"

Tohno looked embarrassed as he scratched the back of his hair. "I don't have a girlfriend, haven't had one since I moved back from berklee. I had my eye on a certain teacher in school, though I don't see how that's going to work out now. I do have a female tenet though, she isn't here most of the time due to work."

Takashi had to resist the urge to chuckle. Tohno reminded him that no matter how distant they seemed, when all was said and done, even teachers were humans after all.

As Takashi walked into an empty room, he noticed that the bed had never been used. It was rather counterproductive to just have empty rooms, but then he saw the female accoutrements scattered around the floor.

 **"It would seem we are trespassing on the tenant's property, kit."**

As Takashi walked out of the room, he saw a painting on a wall. Somehow, it looked familiar to him.

 **"Kit"**

"Yes kurama?"

 **"I believe Tohno is hiding something from us."**

"What makes you think that?"

 **"Well, you see that painting in front of you?"**

"Yes?"

 **"That's the symbol of the sunagakure, the village hidden in the sand."**

"So, you are saying..."

 **"What I'm saying, kit, is that we might find one of three things when we talk to Tohno about this."**

" **A man who has a bad taste for art"**

 **"A friend who could be priceless if we were to survive."**

 **"Or an enemy, ready to bury us under sand."**


	3. Chapter 3

**Remnant of the fox – Chapter 3**

Takashi was disturbed.

In front of him, hung on a wall, was the symbol of the Village hidden in the Sand, Sunagakure. Kurama had spent the last twenty minutes trying to explain the intricacies of the relations between the Uzumaki clan and the residents of Suna. As of now, everything sounded pretty good, but this was thousands of years ago. Kurama could not, for the love of god, tell Takashi a single rumor, much less a fact, about the descendants of the village's main clans. After the formation of Japan, the sand nins had just…disappeared.

But as it stood, the warriors of suna had no love for Konoha nin, except for the Uzumaki clan. Mostly because the Uzumaki clan had been exiled from the village when their leader had opposed the decision of making the last Uchiha a Hokage. Now, Takashi had no idea what a Hokage was, but if Uchihas were anything like what Kurama made them out to be, Takashi could understand why the leader of the Uzumaki clan opposed the Konoha council's decision.

While the Uzumaki clan was well known for kindness, hard work and dedication. The Uchihas were borderline extremists. People say that both the Uzumakis and the Uchihas fought with their emotions on their sleeves. Except these emotions were exact opposites of each other. An Uzumaki would never dare go as far as an Uchiha in order to complete his mission.

And this was what made the Uchihas popular. Efficiency.

Takashi shook his head, the politics of a world long dead were of no consequence to him, at least not currently.

Currently, he had bigger fish to fry.

He kept his hand on his summoning scroll as he heard Tohno exit his bedroom. He looked up to see Tohno wearing a loose, cyan Gi. On his back was an oversized fan. Takashi took this as a confirmation that Tohno did indeed know of the Elemental nations. Trying to get the upper edge, Takashi drew his sword from his scroll, dashing towards Tohno.

To his surprise, though, Tohno did not retaliate. Instead, he simply raised his hands in an expression of surrender.

Perplexed, Takashi took a second to realize that Tohno had no will or incentive to battle him. Tohno looked at Takashi's sword and sighed.

"An Uchiha, aren't you?"

Takashi shook his head. "An Uzumaki. I simply prefer to use good weapons whenever I can."

Tohno nodded "Fair enough. Your chakra signatures and fighting style check out. Though full body chakra reinforcement isn't a skill that any master can teach you these days."

Takashi's eyes widened, "How do you know I can do that?"

Tohno snickered, "Well, you just told me."

Takashi grimaced, this wasn't going good.

 **Don't beat yourself up over it, Kit. I believe he's on to something here.**

"Considering that, I don't believe I'm wrong when I say that you too have a voice in your head." Tohno spoke, prying Takashi's attention away from Kurama.

 **Well, what do we have here?**

Realizing the fact that there was no point lying, Takashi decided to simply turn the question around "A voice in my head, I'm not even going to comment on how absurd that sounds. What gave you the idea?"

Tohno snickered "Well, I have one in my head, and he says that he feels one in you as well. So, considering the fact that you would rather not tell me about it, I'll tell you about mine. I am the container of Shukaku, the one tailed beast"

 **Well, that makes sense. He might not be good in a fight, that one. But he's good with defense and was the best sensor among us. I myself can't sense worth shit.**

Deciding to act in good faith, Takashi sheathed his sword. "I house Kurama, the nine tailed beast."

After a moment of silence, Tohno's eyes widened. "Ah, in that case, I believe that I'm lucky you didn't go through with your attack. Shukaku says he can't hold a candle to the sheer offensive power your bijuu possesses."

Takashi simply nodded. Tohno wouldn't attack him, that he was sure of. That's just how fear worked. Considering how Tohno reacted once he said Kurama's name, Tohno was already hesitant to speak, fearing for his life.

"I have an offer for you" Tohno spoke, getting over his initial hesitance. "You help me guard my baby and I'll support you and whoever else needs assistance with my medical and long range jutsu. To sweeten the pot, I even have an old Uzumaki artifact that was passed down to me. "

Takashi realized that he had the upper hand in this deal. Not only did he have much to lose, considering the fact that Tohno's car was more of an asset than a liability, he would get a good healer and some…relic…out of the deal.

"So, do you have an accord?" Tohno questioned. In response, Takashi merely nodded. Tohno's serious facial expression faded, and with a sigh of relief, his usual smile resurfaced.

"Fantastic!" He yelled "Wait here and I'll get the relic I promised you."

As Tohno ran into his room, Takashi wondered what this relic could possibly be. The sword he had on him was something that the original Uzumaki patriarch was given when he defeated the Uchiha patriarch, beginning an era of friendly rivalry between the two clans. The Uzumaki clan was known to not attach themselves to any weapons personally, choosing to hone their skills instead.

So what could the relic be?

 **Beats me, kit. I'm as clueless as you about all this.**

It took ten minutes for Tohno to return with the relic, which turned out to be a sandalwood box. The fact that it hadn't decayed surprised Takashi, till he noticed a very familiar seal on it.

AN Uzumaki blood seal.

"As you probably can tell, I do not have any idea what this box holds. Only Uzumaki blood can open this box." Tohno spoke, walking back and sitting down on his sofa.

Takashi nodded. He took the box into one hand and drew his sword with the other. Cutting his thumb lightly with the blade, he let the blood trickle onto the seal, which promptly disappeared, leaving behind trace amounts of Chakra.

As he opened the box, he made sure to double check if the box had something malicious inside it. There were faint chakra signatures inside, but nothing malicious.

Opening the box, Takashi found ten kunai, all tri pronged.

As Takashi picked one up. He noticed the runes on it. He simply could not fathom what these runes meant though.

 **Takashi, if those Kunai are what I believe they are, you might have found something priceless.**

Takashi wondered how simple Kunai could be considered priceless. While he could appreciate having new kunai, he couldn't see anything special about the blades except the indecipherable seals.

 **If those really are what they appear to be, I could, in time, teach you a very useful Jutsu.**

Takashi's eyes widened as he realized what this meant. He then replaced the kunai and decided to turn in for the night.

As he passed, Tohno snickered. He had found another warrior.

His baby was safe.


	4. Chapter 4

**Co-Author's Note – Hey there! I'm CruelRuin, one of the two guys who writes this fic. So, today I'm here to address a few review questions**

 **ZairiX – yes, Shukaku will most definitely have a big role in the story.**

 **Blackmoon FierceGods – Not very powerful. Nothing compared to Naruto, really. He'll max to max be as good as a high level Jonin like kakashi.**

 **Guest – We actually plan to finish this story, and trust me, we don't go back on our words, Believe it!**

 **Remnant of the fox – Chapter 4**

* * *

Speed.

Speed, was something that Takashi really liked. In fact, the first application he ever used his chakra for, as a kid, was to run faster, to jump higher and to react faster. He had mastered chakra reinforcement before he could even start with chakra channeling exercises like tree climbing and water-walking.

He enjoyed riding bikes too, more than most cars, really. The feel of wind hitting his face could never be substituted by the sense of security and comfort a car gave. After all, what's the fun in pushing something to the limits and beyond if no danger is involved?

Which is why Takashi found it weird that he was actually enjoying the ride is Tohno's car. Guess good money really could buy you thrills. Hearing the cool, pre-dawn wind whittle through the open window and feeling it hit his face, Takashi could almost forget about the dire situation he was currently in. Like it or not, he couldn't shake his feelings of concern for his parents.

After all, they didn't have as much chakra or as good control as him.

Chakra was rare among humans. And while tales spoke of a time when each and every human could easily harness chakra, Takashi found it hard to believe. Especially once he looked at his family.

The Uzumaki prided themselves over the fact that they birthed the most amount of kids that could use chakra. And that Number itself was nothing much to speak of.

One kid capable of producing and using chakra every three or four generations? What a joke. He could never understand why his family could hold pride in something so insubstantial.

He remembered how strict his parents were in his training. How much money they spent on his tutors. Even though Takashi destroyed his tutors faster than they expected, his parents would always find more.

Hell, it took twelve years and the re-discovery of a legendary swordsman's technique in order for him to get his parents to back off. While they had inadvertently made him much stronger and smarter, in their enthusiasm for seeing his growth, they completely ignored his Jutsu training.

Luckily, that gap was filled up by Kurama, his foxy companion. While Takashi's own rudimentary chakra was barely enough for him to do most low level Jutsu half a dozen times, with Kurama's chakra, he could even the odds against even the strongest of foes.

His mind was slowly slipping back towards the days of his childhood, when he used to train in the Uzumaki compound, instructed by Kurama.

Suddenly, he heard a high caliber shot ring out.

He quickly turned his head towards Tohno, who nodded in confirmation. He heard it too. He swerved his car around a corner as the two shinobi drove towards the origin of the sound.

* * *

Hisashi was trembling.

Was.

Now, his body was moving on its own.

The last thing he remembered seeing was the little girl's father die. The last thing he remembered hearing was Kohta's rifle fire. The last thing he remembered feeling was the numbness of his tightly clenched hand.

Rei stood in front of him, her mouth was moving, but no sound made it to Hisashi as he vaulted over the stairs, grabbing a baseball bat and the crossbow found in Shizuka-sensei's friend's house. Said house was currently abuzz with activity. The girls sure acted fast.

As Hisashi crossed the gate, he realized how vulnerable he currently was, alone in a street filled with the living dead. At a time like this, Hisashi wished he had his best friend around to watch his back.

Not that he deserved a friend as good as Takashi. He couldn't even deny the fact that he had his eyes on Rei much before she broke up with Takashi. He was simply waiting for his chance, and when he got it, he made damn sure he took it.

Takashi's loss was his gain, sure. But things didn't go so smoothly with his best friend. First, Hisashi thought that Takashi had simply lost the will to live. But he hadn't. Instead, he completely ditched Hisashi, Rei, and Saya, choosing instead to bunk classes with that dud Morita.

As Hisashi climbed over the wall that separated him from the little girl, he wondered why he was risking his life to save the little kid. That wasn't the kind of thing he would do. He was a logical man. Why was he acting so much like Takashi then?

As he bashed the undead in front of the girl with his bat, he realized that in his own way, he was trying to fill in the hole that Takashi's absence had left in the group.

As he picked up the little girl, consoling her, he realized that he had just made a grave mistake. He told the girls to provide covering fire, not to clear him a return path. And if he shouted out orders now, the undead would be upon him before the girls could even get to the Humvee.

In other words, he was screwed.

It was then that he heard screeching tires from the end of the lane he was in. A car stopped there and its doors opened.

As Hisashi saw who stepped out of the car, he gasped.

Maybe there was still some hope for him.

* * *

Rei couldn't believe it. While Saya had told her that Takashi was travelling with a teacher, she never thought he'd make it through the first day. He was too brash, too trusting, and too loud.

Yet, Standing in front of the car was Takashi, his facial expression unreadable in the darkness. But Rei, being his childhood friend, could tell that something was off.

This was not the Takashi she knew.

In place of the cheery, energetic boy she knew, stood a man who exuded quiet confidence. As she looked on, she saw him draw a sword out of nowhere. The stance he took with his sword extended was next to perfect. There were simply no openings. He then turned his head, looking directly at her.

By all means, in such darkness, it should have been impossible for Takashi to spot her in the balcony. But she could swear to god that he did. He locked eyes with her for a moment, then moved on to Saeko and Kohta.

It was then that Rei looked away, realizing that Hisashi had gotten himself stuck in a very dangerous situation. She reacted almost instantly, running for the Humvee parked in the garage. As she got to it, Saeko and Shizuka right behind her, she saw the other man with Takashi leap over the Gate of the house. Before Rei could react, he held out a hand to stop them.

"Ladies, it would be unwise to attract the attention of the undead right now, especially when Takashi and Hisashi are out there. Now. If I were you, I'd just sit tight and watch the show."

Rei Blanched, stopping in her tracks. Instead, she decided to follow the man's advice and simply watch.

* * *

They say that a true shinobi could walk through an alert crowd without being seen or heard a single time. The ability to hold one's breath, killer intent and noise at bay made for a more dangerous shinobi than the ability to spam jutsu.

 **Kit, are you really going to save the teme?**

Takashi simply nodded, letting his thoughts do the talking. He still believed that he owed Hisashi one. While Hisashi had technically stolen the girl he loved, he had also been a good friend all through Takashi's school life. And for that, he deserved to live, if only a while longer.

 **You Uzumakis and your habit of protecting any and every one you meet. I swear, Takashi. If your stupidity won't be the death of you, nothing else will be.**

Takashi chuckled once before raising his sword. If he was to do what he planned, he'd have to be fast, efficient, and silent.

And as a Ninja, he felt that he simply couldn't bear to disappoint Kurama with his skills.

Sword held low, Takashi took one deep breath.

And then, he charged.

* * *

Saeko was stunned.

She had just seen the boy named Takashi completely erase his presence. Saeko was a fighter, and hence knew that the intent to kill, maim, or even fight, was necessary in order for a warrior to correctly wield his sword against an opponent, dead or living.

What she saw in front of her, then, conflicted against everything she knew. Takashi was gracefully slipping through the undead at speeds she could barely follow. His sword was in constant motion. Spurts of blood erupted from the neck of each undead he would pass. She looked at his feet and saw that he moved like a dancer, each step perfectly calculated. As she watched Takashi gracefully cut through the group of two dozen undead, she realized that she was, for lack of a better word, mesmerized by the warrior's skill.

As Takashi finished his waltz of death, he appeared out on the other side of the horde. Saeko took in his appearance once again.

His clothes were completely sprayed with blood. His hair was matted down by it. His eyes were closed, but there was not a single speck of it on his blade. It was almost as if he was so fast that the blood could simply not stick to his sword.

As he re-sheathed his sword, Saeko noticed his presence return, heavier than ever.

And she felt it, a feeling that she believed was gone. Something that she had come to both love and hate.

She felt bloodlust, her bloodlust.

Let it be known that Saeko Busujima had two weaknesses, hot guys and formidable warriors.

And it didn't really help that the man on the other side of the gate was both.

* * *

Hisashi scrambled to his feet. In the minute it had taken Takashi to end the entire group of undead. One of them had snuck up to Hisashi. In his hurry to scramble away, he dropped his bat. His crossbow was worthless at short range. As he felt his back hit the wall, he felt something hard press into it.

Realizing what the item was, Hisashi waited. And as soon as the undead lunged, he drew the weapon.

Only for the Undead to lose its head even before it reached him. He kunai in Hisashi's hand met only Air as it fumbled from his grip and flew into the waiting hand of his best friend.

"Thank you for returning what is rightfully mine, Hisashi. I see you aren't in the habit of stealing what rightfully belongs to someone else. That's good."

As Hisashi focused, he saw his best friend, bloodied, unrecognizable. Not because of any physical changes, but because of how different he felt.

In front of him stood a killer, cold blooded and ruthless.

"Well then, Hisashi. Isn't it time I met the rest of the group?"

Hisashi gulped as he heard Takashi speak. As he looked at his best friend's face, he could have sworn he saw Takashi's eyes change into red slits.

Hisashi gulped. This wasn't how he wanted his reunion with his friend to be.

Not even close.


	5. Chapter 5

**Co-Author's Note – Yeah, sorry guys, I was out of station for a while, so this update's been welling in my PC for like ages. Hope you enjoy it!**

 **Review Replies –**

 **Omnipotent97 – yes, Naruto will make an appearance soon, what more, so will a certain sharingan weilder. ;)**

 **Chaos Breaker Dragon – He's got most basic jutsu, the most powerful jutsu he can use yet is the rasengan, and that too like twice before exhausting himself. He does have kyuubi mode, but only for a few minutes at a go.**

 **Remnant of the fox – Chapter 4**

* * *

Tense

That was the best way to describe the room that Takashi now sat in. His old friends were now staring at him like a stranger, or in some cases, like a threat. While Takashi felt awkward, he could more than understand why his erstwhile friends were looking at him like he was some sort of alien life form.

The Takashi they came to know, to love, and some cases, even hate, was not the man who sat in front in them. He had been replaced by someone else. Someone who had no fear, no inhibition and no lack of skill. Gone was the happy-go-lucky Takashi Komuro. In front of them now sat Takashi Uzumaki. A man raised by one of the last, and possibly the most prestigious remaining ninja clans in Japan. Hisashi was lost for words. As Takashi's self-proclaimed best friend, he couldn't have imagined that Takashi would be capable enough to hide such power from him. As a champion of Karate, he felt lacking due to his inability to gauge Takashi's threat level.

Rei herself was equally confused. He had been around Takashi ever since they were young. And while she did know that Takashi was prone to rather dark thoughts at times, she couldn't believe that his true personality completely skipped her attention. She dated the man for god's sake. She had seen him naked. She now realized that his toned body wasn't something he attained in a gym, considering he never went to one. His tone was one gained through hours of combat and training.

Saeko herself couldn't take her eyes off him. Try as she might, she couldn't allow Takashi's presence to fade without her noticing. She saw how he completely killed his presence when he fought the undead. While it was mildly effective against a foe as primitive as the shambling husk of a dead human, against a live opponent, it would be deadly. She could understand how Takashi was able to escape her scrutiny in school if he was capable of killing his presence whenever he wished to. But she couldn't allow him to do it any longer. He could be a threat to the group.

And that was precisely what excited her the most.

Kohta couldn't really care less about his history, considering he barely knew the guy. Takashi had always been one of the 'cool kids'. While he had never picked on Kohta, he never made the effort to talk to him either. What he did care about was the fact that the newest addition to the group was fast, strong, and undeniably powerful. All in all, he'd rather not be on the side that pissed the guy off.

Saya was the only one not surprised by the change. The Takagis were descendants of samurai, and with chakra capacities among shinobi decreasing with every generation, swords and other such weapons were becoming more commonplace for ninja. And who better to teach a ninja kenjutsu than a true blooded Samurai? Hence Takashi spent a large part of his formative years at the Takagi estate, learning from Saya's father. She had seen Takashi's father too, and that knowledge was what formed her next sentence.

"You know, Takashi? You feel more and more like your old man every second I look at you. Not that it is a bad thing, though."

Takashi allowed himself a light smile. Count on Saya to figure everything out the fastest. "That's the idea, it feels almost liberating to stop acting like a dunce for once." He knew that there was no point hiding it anymore. He was strong, he was capable. And it wouldn't hurt the world to know that side of him, especially when the consequences of treading through life as a dunce might end in his death, or worse, him turning into one of those undead freaks.

"I'm sure you all have question for Takashi here" Tohno spoke up from his place beside Shizuka, Interrupting Takashi's internal musings, "But I believe Takashi should have a bath, He's staining the couch with the blood."

Takashi looked down at himself, he then noticed that his clothes were completely spattered with gore. And it was then that the smell hit him. A smell that could make even the worse of flatulence smell like mildew.

"Oh" Takashi remarked as he excused himself to the nearest washroom, seven pairs of eyes patiently followed his ascent up the stairs. As they heard the door click, a wave of relief washed aver the congregation. The tension melted like butter on a hot plate, and conversation started again. Rei begun. "Is that really Takashi? L-like, did you see those eyes? Those were definitely not the eyes of the boy I once knew…"

Saya snapped "You know, Rei, instead of blaming him for this change, would it be easier to believe if I told you that you never truly knew him?" the reply forced everyone's attention towards Saya, who continued. "You've known Takashi almost as long as I have, did you just conveniently forget how he used to behave as a child? Cold? Distant? Rings a bell?"

Rei gulped, she did remember. Takashi was always alone, even when he was with people. He was always quiet. He'd sit among his 'friends', just watching, observing. And then one day, he started to speak. More and more with time, he became outgoing, and that's when Rei unknowingly made a promise of a lifetime to him.

A promise she'd already broken.

"You know, Rei," Saya continued. "you sit there, believing that you somehow singlehandedly changed him during his formative year. But lo and behold! When faced with the real Takashi, the man you first met, you seem lost for words? It just proves how inattentive you are, inattentive and naive."

Rei dropped her gaze, choosing not to speak. But Saya wasn't done yet.

"He always liked you, even when he was a kid. I believe he manufactured that bumbly, lovable personality just to make sure you don't feel threatened by his competence once you start growing up. I mean, you failed a class while he got promoted to your grade. I believe that stung your pride more than the fact that it was a fraudulent teacher that caused your failure. But then again, that's exactly the kind of reaction I expect from someone as selfish as you."

"Hey! Cut it out!" Hisashi intervened, springing to his feet in defiance. He was about to leap at Saya when he felt a hand close in around his wrist. Looking down, he saw Rei holding him back. She shook her head, preventing him from making any rash moves. Instead, she stood up and pointed at Saya, an accusing look taking over her face.

"Since when were you an expert on Takashi? You've known him just as long as I have. And you know what? He always avoided you. Hell, everyone did. You were always that loudmouthed know-it-all. A prissy little kid from a rich family." Rei sneered "How would you ever be able to empathize with him?"

Saya giggled "Oh, you poor, poor girl. Did you really classify Takashi as a middle class kid with no ambition, even as a child? He's always been smarter than us, stronger than us. He trained with my father at the age of ten. He could grasp techniques that people would spend their lives learning in mere months. I call myself a prodigy, but in front of him, all I am is second rate." Saya's reply made Rei look away. Loath as she was to believe her, she had just seen Takashi cut through a few dozen undead like it was as easy as breathing.

"But, you were the jewel of the group. Every guy wanted to be your friend, if not more. You always reveled in their attention, so why would you pay any attention to them? That's the thing about you pretty girls, always so full of yourself." Saya concluded, crossing her arms under her considerable bust. It might be ironic coming from Saya, who was popularly considered one of the prettier girls in school, but that didn't make the point any less poignant.

"So, that was the Takagi style of kendo." Saeko spoke up from her seat next to Kohta, "I've seen it in action before, but I never knew that it could be so…deadly." She spoke, voicing her doubts. Saya, for all due praise to her family, took the comment in stride.

"That might have been our stile, mainly, but Takashi has had many other tutors over the years. While my father was his predominant trainer, the style he prefers to use most is an ancient one. No one knows which tutor taught it to him, but it is potent, and that's all that matters." Saya replied. Saeko tilted her head in confusion. How exactly did a man that powerful escape her notice? That, she would never know.

"I believe we should drop this topic and speak about the matter at hand." The entire group turned to see Tohno-sensei sitting beside Shizuka-sensei. Who had fallen asleep sometime during the talk. Her head rested on Tohno's shoulder, but he didn't seem to mind. Kohta had to say, the two looked pretty cute together.

On the other hand, the others had completely forgot about Tohno even being there. They had an in-depth conversation about Takashi while the very man who he was travelling was.

Well, fuck.

* * *

 **Well, kit, it looks like Saya was a true friend all this while.**

Takashi barely smirked as he let the warm water from the shower cleanse him. Chakra reinforcement allowed him to hear each and every word the group had uttered. He was still quite surprised by how well Saya understood him, even as a kid. Apparently he underestimated her. Not that it mattered, really. She had always been loyal to him, and he rewarded loyalty with respect.

That was his ninja way.

"I believe I'll escort her home, also, it seems Saeko's taken an interest in me too."

 **That girl, she's as sharp as they come.**

"Well, I'd hate to disappoint her, then,"

* * *

Author's Note - Yeah sorry guys I couldn't upload this earlier I was out of commission for a REALLY long time and then after that I got really lazy so for that I apologize


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